CINCINNATI -- Forget sentimentality, Reds manager Terry Francona wanted wins.
Facing the Guardians, the franchise he managed for 11 seasons, for the first time since resigning after 2023, Francona kept his feelings in check.
“This will be the first time I root against them," Francona said pregame on Friday. "For the longest time, even last year, I always rooted for them. Not this weekend. A lot of guys I love over there, but I hope we beat them.”
Reds players understood the assignment. Cincinnati jumped out ahead early and held on for a 5-4 victory over Cleveland at Great American Ball Park in the first game of the Ohio Cup Rivalry Weekend series.
More important for Cincinnati than beating its manager's former team, it has back-to-back wins after losing three in a row and nine of 11. In large part, it's because the lineup is starting to percolate again.
In nine games from May 4-13, the Reds were held to one run or fewer six times. In their last three games, they have batted .314 with six homers, eight doubles and 14 runs scored.
“These last few games, I feel like we’re hitting those mistakes and we’re hitting the ball hard and that’s why you’re starting to see the home runs show up, you’re starting to see the doubles and the slugs show up," said left fielder Austin Hays, who hit a leadoff homer to left field against Tanner Bibee in the third inning to make it a 5-0 game. "We’re just doing a better job of handling the pitches we should be, the mistake pitches.”
The Reds took a 4-0 lead with four runs in the bottom of the second inning against Bibee. The big blow came via former Guardians player Will Benson, who hit a 1-2 sweeper over the middle of the plate for a three-run home run to right field.
Benson, like Francona, had no extra sentiments for his former team.
“I was joking about it today," Benson said. "I’ve kind of gotten past that revenge tour type of feel. But I’m having breakfast with [Steven] Kwan in the morning, so we’ll have a good laugh.”
Benson, who was recalled from Triple-A Louisville on May 9, has hit homers on back-to-back days for the third time in his career, launching a solo shot in Thursday’s 7-1 win against the White Sox.
"We’ve been swinging it well. It’s always a matter of timing for us," Benson said.
"When those things are clicking and you put consecutive at-bats together, more times than not that’s going to end in some runs.”
Perhaps the warmer weather is helping the offense? Francona noted he was no scientist before the game when posed the question.
“Early in the year when it’s really cold, you can have a nice at-bat that first at-bat and it doesn’t carry over. You’ve got to come in the dugout the next time up and you’ve got to reheat your bat -- the handle," Francona said. "When you feel good when it starts to get hot, it can start to carry over. That’s what I do think. I’m sure the ball does carry better when it’s warm but I just think it’s easier to continue feeling good as it heats up.”
Francona, who came out of his one-year retirement when the Reds hired him to replace David Bell in October, knew his old team well enough to know the Guardians wouldn't go quietly.
Reds starter Brady Singer gave up three earned runs and three hits over five innings with three walks and four strikeouts. Bogged down during a 33-pitch fourth inning, Singer struggled to get the third out with Carlos Santana's two-run single to right-center field getting Cleveland on the scoreboard. Bo Naylor added a solo homer to right-center field to lead off the fifth inning and make it a two-run game.
The Reds’ lead was further reduced to 5-4 when José Ramírez hit a solo shot deep to right field in the eighth inning against Tony Santillan. Emilio Pagán closed things out with a perfect ninth to collect his 10th save of the season.
After a 4-2 loss to Chicago on Wednesday, when the club had six extra-base hits, Benson noted the club held a meeting ahead of Thursday's series finale.
“We had that meeting the next day, [and said] 'Hey, just go out there and do the same thing and it will come together.’ You kind of understand when it’s about to pop and then when you’re in it, you just ride it.”